The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa, Volume 1 eBook

him thus, ’Rise, O man of piety, rise, may righteousness
shield thee; we are much pleased with thee for thy
piety; mayst thou be blessed with a long life, and
with knowledge, high intelligence, and fulfilment
of thy desires. Thou art a good and dutiful son,
for, we are constantly and reasonably looked after
by thee, and even amongst the celestials thou hast
not another divinity to worship. By constantly
subduing thyself, thou hast become endowed with the
self-restraining power of Brahmanas and all thy grandsires
and ancestors are constantly pleased with thee for
thy self-restraining virtues and for thy piety towards
us. In thought, word or deed thy attention to
us never flags, and it seems that at present thou
hast no other thought in thy mind (save as to how
to please us). As Rama, the son of Jamadagni,
laboured to please his aged parents, so hast thou,
O Son, done to please us, and even more. Then
the fowler introduced the Brahmana to his parents
and they received him with the usual salutation of
welcome, and the Brahmana accepting their welcome,
enquired if they, with their children and servants,
were all right at home, and if they were always enjoying
good health at that time (of life). The aged couple
replied, ’At home, O Brahmana, we are all right,
with all our servants. Hast thou, adorable sir,
reached this place without any difficulty?’ Markandeya
continued, “The Brahmana replied, ‘Yes,
I have.’ Then the fowler addressing himself
to the Brahmana said to him, ’These my parents,
worshipful sir, are the idols that I worship; whatever
is due to the gods, I do unto them. As the thirty-three
gods with Indra at their head are worshipped by men,
so are these aged parents of mine worshipped by me.
As Brahmanas exert themselves for the purpose of procuring
offering for their gods, so do I act with diligence
for these two (idols of mine). These my father
and mother, O Brahmana, are my supreme gods, and I
seek to please them always with offering of flowers,
fruits and gems. To me they are like the three
sacred fires mentioned by the learned; and, O Brahmana,
they seem to me to be as good as sacrifices or the
four Vedas. My five life-giving airs, my wife
and children and friends are all for them (dedicated
to their service). And with my wife and children
I always attend on them. O good Brahmana, with
my own hands I assist them in bathing and also wash
their feet and give them food and I say to them only
what is agreeable, leaving out what is unpleasant.
I consider it to be my highest duty to do what is
agreeable to them even though it be not strictly justifiable.
And, O Brahmana, I am always diligent in attending
on them. The two parents, the sacred fire, the
soul and the spiritual preceptor, these five, O good
Brahmana, are worthy of the highest reverence from
a person who seeks prosperity. By serving them
properly, one acquires the merit of perpetually keeping
up the sacred fire. And it is the eternal and
invariable duty of all householders.”